Sex offender registry lists will now be made available to state and local welfare agencies placing children in temporary housing during emergencies, following Gov. Chris Christie’s signing a notification bill into law Tuesday.

While the bill’s sponsor, Assemblyman John Burzichelli (D-3, of Paulsboro), said the bill had been in the works since the mid-2000s, discussions surrounding sex offender notifications and emergency placement of families was re-ignited in the fall when thousands of families were relocated after Superstorm Sandy.

Closer to home for Burzichelli was the placement of Paulsboro families in nearby motels during a train derailment and toxic chemical spill in the borough in November that forced the evacuations of about 200 homes.

Through December and January, the South Jersey Times followed one Paulsboro family — Del and Danielle Doran and their two teenage daughters — who were placed in the East Greenwich Motel 6 for two weeks while the chemical spill was cleaned up.

Also in the motel lived a man convicted of sexual assault on a 13-year-old girl. The Doran family was never notified of the man’s residence in the motel when Conrail, a private rail company, made housing arrangements for the family and dozens of others.

While the law won’t apply to private companies, it will “take down the hurdles of agencies not talking to each other,” Burzichelli said.

“It’s not very complicated,” he added.

The bill unanimously passed through the state Senate and Assembly, and the governor signed it into law Tuesday.

In the legislature, the bill was also sponsored by Linda Greenstein, D-14 of Plainsboro, and Fred Madden, D-4 of Washington Township, in the state Senate.